Tempted & Taken (Men of Haven #4)(65)
Well, there might be a few things that could distract him. The night she’d strolled out of the bathroom post-shower with nothing on but a towel, he’d ditched his computer and taken her from behind braced against a wall. Or, like tonight, Denzel in The Equalizer might get his attention. She still hadn’t figured out why he loved that movie so much, but if it was on, he always stopped and watched it to the end.
Although, he wasn’t really watching it tonight. Even without turning her head to confirm it, she felt his thoughtful gaze on her as sure as a tap on her shoulder.
She should tell him about her past. The way things were shifting between them he deserved to know. To truly understand what he was risking by being with her. Heck, if she was smart, she’d use the movie still playing on the screen as the perfect opening. To leverage some of the uncanny truths it portrayed to break her silence and share why she was running.
But she wasn’t ready. Not yet. Not until they had more time.
She copied the skip’s most recent address, pasted it in her report and hit save. In the background, Denzel’s confrontation with the vor he’d tracked down at the end of movie filled the otherwise comfortable silence. Another few seconds and the bad guy would get it.
Knox loved that part, but a quick glance his direction confirmed he was completely detached from the action and centered solely on her.
Dropping her hands in her lap, she pushed away from the desk and frowned at him. “I can’t focus when you’re watching me like that.”
“When I’m watching you like what?”
“Like you’re crafting devious plans.”
The dirty grin she’d come to not only love, but eagerly anticipate tilted his lips. “I thought you liked my devious plans.”
Oh, she liked them all right. Particularly the ones where the two of them ended up naked, sweaty and boneless from toe-curling sex. Commandeering the mouse again, she punched the back button on her browser session. “I can’t afford devious plans right now. I’m behind on my contract jobs and if I don’t get some information out to my skip clients tonight, they’re going to start threatening to use someone else.”
The grin shifted to a smirk. A seriously, self-satisfied smirk that said she’d all but danced right into the terrain where he wanted her. “Let ’em.”
It was a dare, one thrown with a soft voice, but thick with challenge.
How she kept from looking at him—from meeting his gaze and letting the hope he’d fired with his simple words shine bright—was a miracle. Instead, she scrolled down the screen, not seeing a single thing that passed her focus. “I’m not ready yet.”
“Yes, you are.”
Three simple words, but hearing them from Knox was the highest praise there was. At least in her book. She met his stare. “You mean that?”
“Have I ever blown smoke up your ass?”
No. Absolutely not. Knox could be extraordinarily thoughtful. Giving and detailed to a fault, but a bullshitter? Never.
Not waiting for her to answer, he motioned to the computer on his lap. “I just looked at the app rewrite you sent yesterday. The idea might not have been yours, but your execution was spot-on and you streamlined shit I didn’t even think to catch. All you need is your own idea and you’re off to the races.”
Her own idea.
Her own opportunity.
Her own future.
But, she had to be practical. To set a solid foundation that would give her plenty of room to grow. And that meant staying the course until she had at least a handful of salable products. “Maybe. But giving up the solid income is reckless. Better to experiment and build on the side while my skip jobs pay the bills.”
“It’s not reckless if you come to work for me full time.”
She froze, rewinding his words in her head even as she studied him for clues she hadn’t misheard. “What?”
He closed his laptop, slid it onto the coffee table with the casual confidence of a man utterly certain of his actions and stood. “Come to work for me.” He stalked toward her, the low waistband of his jeans accentuating the sharp V at his hips. “You’re already pulling full-time hours. If you ditch the skip work you’ll have extra time to brainstorm and work up prototypes.” He braced one hand on the back of her chair and the other on the desk, leaning in close. “Plus, you’d have the added benefit of some very hands-on coaching.”
Damn, but his voice was a weapon when he wielded it that way. Within kissing distance it was even headier, the smooth baritone of it scattering the few productive thoughts she’d managed to construct and stirring a whole host of tingles low in her stomach.
But she couldn’t lose her focus. Not with a topic as important as this one. She focused on his lips and her heartbeat shifted to a hummingbird flutter. “It’s the hands-on part I’m worried about.”
“Really? Because I think we’ve got that part down pat.” He teased his lips against hers, a barely there touch that made her own part, ready and impatient for more. “Give me one good reason why you shouldn’t work with me.”
Reason? There wasn’t one. At least not one capable of overpowering the very tangible physical need he’d nudged to the surface. Fear, though, was another matter. One she’d be foolish not to broach. “What happens when this is over? When you’re ready to move on? What if that makes our work life untenable?”